ROTORCRAFT PIONEERS


ARMY & AIR FORCE


ROTORCRAFT PIONEERS BY BRAD MCNALLY


Brigadier General Hollingsworth F. Gregory


Hollingsworth Franklin Gregory was born in Rockwell, TX in 1906. Frank Gregory as most people knew him, grad- uated from high school in Shelby, MS in 1923. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Mississippi in 1926, Gregory worked for several years as a Mississippi high school principal (Official Air Force Biography, 1956). In 1928 Gregory enlisted in the U.S. Army as a flying cadet and attended the Primary and Advanced Flying Schools at Brooks Field, TX.


after receiving his wings and a commis-


sion as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Corps, Gregory began his military flying career as a fixed wing pilot.


In


1935, the Army purchased its first direct control autogyros. They were sent to Langley Field, VA to be tested by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics or NACA.


In 1936, while The following year,


stationed as the Engineering Officer with Flight E of the 16th Observation Squadron at Fort Sill, OK, Gregory was picked to be one of the autogyro test pilots (Gregory, 1944). The Army saw the autogyro’s future as a reconnaissance aircraft because of its slow flight capabili- ty. Gregory’s technical background and his experience in observation squadrons


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